Counselors: Can a student opt out of one core magnet class and take regular instead?

[Anonymous]

Three of my A/B students are failing my colleague’s class. They want to remain in our program, but drop her course and take regular. Any precedent for this?

[Anonymous]

What is the program and the course? And I think this is a question for the magnet coordinator. In some programs you are either with the cohort, or shift completely out to the HS regular classes.

[Anonymous]

I don't think that's allowed. That's why they are core classes for the program. I think the magnet coordinator needs to have a talk with the teacher to see why those students aren't doing well if they are typically good students. In one program, some good students had a lot of problems with a flipped classroom model where the teacher wasn't supporting students adequately but just making them watch videos at home and then not answering their questions in class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't think that's allowed. That's why they are core classes for the program. I think the magnet coordinator needs to have a talk with the teacher to see why those students aren't doing well if they are typically good students. In one program, some good students had a lot of problems with a flipped classroom model where the teacher wasn't supporting students adequately but just making them watch videos at home and then not answering their questions in class.

Not sure that's all that fair or accurate, I remember the thread. My DC was in that class and enjoyed the format and did fine. Students who slack off when the teacher isn't there need to take some responsibility for their outcome.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't think that's allowed. That's why they are core classes for the program. I think the magnet coordinator needs to have a talk with the teacher to see why those students aren't doing well if they are typically good students. In one program, some good students had a lot of problems with a flipped classroom model where the teacher wasn't supporting students adequately but just making them watch videos at home and then not answering their questions in class.

Not sure that's all that fair or accurate, I remember the thread. My DC was in that class and enjoyed the format and did fine. Students who slack off when the teacher isn't there need to take some responsibility for their outcome.

Your response, referring to your DC's experience, would make sense if the previous poster had said "all the students" had problems with that teacher.

That poster was correct to say "some students" had a problem. In fact some of the parents had brought it up in the magnet mailing list - putting their names behind their complaints. (While my DC, in a different cohort, did not have that teacher, DC was fully aware of the problems.)

It is very rare that a teacher is so bad that *every* student is going to complain. It is just statistics that one will always find some students that did not have a problem with any given teacher. It is disgusting to tar all the students that had an issue as slackers just because one's own DC did fine with a teacher/format.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't think that's allowed. That's why they are core classes for the program. I think the magnet coordinator needs to have a talk with the teacher to see why those students aren't doing well if they are typically good students. In one program, some good students had a lot of problems with a flipped classroom model where the teacher wasn't supporting students adequately but just making them watch videos at home and then not answering their questions in class.

Not sure that's all that fair or accurate, I remember the thread. My DC was in that class and enjoyed the format and did fine. Students who slack off when the teacher isn't there need to take some responsibility for their outcome.

Your response, referring to your DC's experience, would make sense if the previous poster had said "all the students" had problems with that teacher.

That poster was correct to say "some students" had a problem. In fact some of the parents had brought it up in the magnet mailing list - putting their names behind their complaints. (While my DC, in a different cohort, did not have that teacher, DC was fully aware of the problems.)

It is very rare that a teacher is so bad that *every* student is going to complain. It is just statistics that one will always find some students that did not have a problem with any given teacher. It is disgusting to tar all the students that had an issue as slackers just because one's own DC did fine with a teacher/format.

-- DP

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't think that's allowed. That's why they are core classes for the program. I think the magnet coordinator needs to have a talk with the teacher to see why those students aren't doing well if they are typically good students. In one program, some good students had a lot of problems with a flipped classroom model where the teacher wasn't supporting students adequately but just making them watch videos at home and then not answering their questions in class.

Not sure that's all that fair or accurate, I remember the thread. My DC was in that class and enjoyed the format and did fine. Students who slack off when the teacher isn't there need to take some responsibility for their outcome.

Your response, referring to your DC's experience, would make sense if the previous poster had said "all the students" had problems with that teacher.

That poster was correct to say "some students" had a problem. In fact some of the parents had brought it up in the magnet mailing list - putting their names behind their complaints. (While my DC, in a different cohort, did not have that teacher, DC was fully aware of the problems.)

It is very rare that a teacher is so bad that *every* student is going to complain. It is just statistics that one will always find some students that did not have a problem with any given teacher. It is disgusting to tar all the students that had an issue as slackers just because one's own DC did fine with a teacher/format.

Most did fine but a few who I'm told played games during class didn't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't think that's allowed. That's why they are core classes for the program. I think the magnet coordinator needs to have a talk with the teacher to see why those students aren't doing well if they are typically good students. In one program, some good students had a lot of problems with a flipped classroom model where the teacher wasn't supporting students adequately but just making them watch videos at home and then not answering their questions in class.

Not sure that's all that fair or accurate, I remember the thread. My DC was in that class and enjoyed the format and did fine. Students who slack off when the teacher isn't there need to take some responsibility for their outcome.

Your response, referring to your DC's experience, would make sense if the previous poster had said "all the students" had problems with that teacher.

That poster was correct to say "some students" had a problem. In fact some of the parents had brought it up in the magnet mailing list - putting their names behind their complaints. (While my DC, in a different cohort, did not have that teacher, DC was fully aware of the problems.)

It is very rare that a teacher is so bad that *every* student is going to complain. It is just statistics that one will always find some students that did not have a problem with any given teacher. It is disgusting to tar all the students that had an issue as slackers just because one's own DC did fine with a teacher/format.

Most did fine but a few who I'm told played games during class didn't.

My child knows some of the students who did fine and more who did not do fine and those who were struggling were not playing games in class. I think it's really arrogant for you to come here and paint a whole group of students with insults like that and not once but twice. Kids don't all learn the same way.

[Anonymous]

I'm not a counselor, but I'm a parent of a former magnet student who is currently a college freshman. During DC's high school freshman year, a student who struggled in a magnet class dropped down to the honors version of that class in order to build a solid foundation before moving forward. That student succeeded in getting the necessary help and ended up basically where all the other magnet students ended up by the end of senior year, though that student needed to use an elective period(s) in junior/senior year to double up on classes in that subject in order to catch up. It can be done, but it probably depends on the class. Those students who are struggling should definitely reach out to their counselors or magnet coordinator.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm not a counselor, but I'm a parent of a former magnet student who is currently a college freshman. During DC's high school freshman year, a student who struggled in a magnet class dropped down to the honors version of that class in order to build a solid foundation before moving forward. That student succeeded in getting the necessary help and ended up basically where all the other magnet students ended up by the end of senior year, though that student needed to use an elective period(s) in junior/senior year to double up on classes in that subject in order to catch up. It can be done, but it probably depends on the class. Those students who are struggling should definitely reach out to their counselors or magnet coordinator.

That's incredibly decent of them to work with the kids and help them succeed. So often they just want to follow some rule book and seem to disregard the human cost.